By Kimberley Jones B.A.Hons
In June of this year I allowed myself to be unsure & afraid. I invited vulnerability & surrendered to the unknown. I exhibited ‘energyscapes’, a collection of inspired & deeply sourced paintings for the first time.
This was my first solo exhibition & I was not at all prepared for how I would feel or the overwhelming response it would receive. The act of putting on the exhibition reflected
ten-fold the act of painting each individual ‘energyscape’. It was a leap of faith; a terrifying jump into something I felt pretty sure was beautiful but knew could be equally painful. I was going public with the fact that I see & feel the energy that surrounds us all, runs through us, sustains us & challenges us. On one level it felt utterly self-indulgent but on another I knew I was offering myself as a channel for something higher, this was me being willing to become bigger & smaller at the same time.
On the first morning of the ‘energyscapes’ exhibition I sat not knowing how it would be received. I was moved & terrified as the first person walked through the door. It was from that moment that I knew the collection was far bigger than me; it came to life & took over. It spoke to people in many voices. It unnerved & exhilarated me, I felt humbled by the whole experience & wasn’t at all sure I could do it all again.
It was in observing & sharing the many powerful responses to the collection that I realised I now had a responsibility to continue. Something about this work was reaching people in a way they hadn’t been reached before. How? Why? I don’t know. I feel I am a channel for this work & cannot claim credit for it fully. I am grateful & happy to be doing this work & to be able to share it once again.
I have been asked if I will run workshops for people to access deeper levels of connection via the process of painting, experienced artists have asked if I could help them let go of representational art & explore feeling through abstraction.
All I can say is watch this space. I am growing into my new role, wrestling with the fears that emerge & trusting that I can do justice to these beautiful energies that claim passage through me onto the canvas.
I would like to thank all who attended the first ‘energyscapes’ exhibition. I admire your courage in allowing yourself to be so open & your willingness to feel so deeply. I look forward to seeing you again.
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(Above article first published in 'Breathing Space' magazine).
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Blessings,
Kimberley Jones